The slit stretching about two inches on the left side of his neck was not easy to miss, a different feature that Bruce Arena displayed since the last time he coached. Nick Green’s 100 Percent Soccer blog

“I had spinal fusion surgery six weeks ago,” Arena said under a bright sun on the training field at Home Depot Center. “I have full clearance; I have no restrictions as of a week and a half ago. I feel great. It’s something that’s been bothering me for 10 years.”

Arena now will be the surgeon-in-charge of a fusion operation. He’s been called upon to stitch the Galaxy together into a team that can make a course correction in Major League Soccer, to turn a star-heavy team that must end an eight-match winless streak before it holds hope of reaching the 2008 playoffs.

And then take it to championship level without the mayhem of recent weeks that more resembled “Spinal Tap” than solid backbone.

“When you have Landon Donovan, David Beckham, you’re not that bad off,” Arena said after his first official day on the job.

“We have some good players to build this team around, some experienced players, some good young players. Obviously there are some issues with injuries and all of that, but we can get better and we’re capable of getting enough points to qualify for the playoffs.

“I’m not waving any kind of magic wand and telling you that Thursday you’re going to see the best team in the history of this league.

“No, you’re going to see a team that’s going to be on that field working for each other and trying to get a result.”

The rebirth of the Galaxy (6-8-6) begins Thursday at Home Depot Center against the Chicago Fire, and it figures to be an uphill contest. Donovan (United States), Beckham (England) and forward Carlos Ruiz (Guatemala) can’t be counted upon to return after playing international matches Wednesday.

But Arena, 57, is looking long term. It has been about nine months see he departed the New York Red Bulls, where he landed after leading the U.S. to two World Cup appearances. This will be the third head coaching job in MLS for Arena, who has built a 77-51-10 mark with two titles for D.C. United.

He led the U.S. to a quarterfinal appearance in the 2002 World Cup, but also saw his team stumble out in the first round in ’06.

Anschutz Entertainment Group CEO Tim Leiweke chose Arena not only as head coach to replace Ruud Gullit, but also has the general manager to replace the fired Alexi Lalas.

Cobi Jones, a former player under Arena who coached the Galaxy in a 2-2 tie with Chivas USA Thursday, will remain as an assistant.

“In my opinion, Bruce is the right choice,” Donovan said in a statement from Guatemala, where the U.S. will play Wednesday. “This organization has been searching for a vision, and I think Bruce will give us that.

“People shouldn’t expect miracles overnight. While in the short term hiring Bruce is going to benefit us, the long-term effects of having him lead the organization will be even greater. I also want to thank Cobi Jones for his professionalism in a difficult time, and for bringing stability to a difficult situation.”

Donovan also played on Arena’s two World Cup teams.

“I think Bruce’s greatest attributes are that he treats the players respectfully and he knows how to get the most out of them,” Donovan said.

“Bruce gave me my first opportunity with the national team, and I look forward to many more successful years together.”

Arena acknowledged his double duties could be draining, so he brought in Dave Sarachan as associate head coach. The two have worked together for 24 years.

“In having two duties as head coach and general manager, that’s a lot of responsibility and I know from my previous stints that a lot of my successes in coaching are because I’ve had very good players and I’ve also had a guy next to me I could depend on,” Arena said. “I realized if I was going to take on this challenge I’d need to have a second in command that when I get assassinated could take over right away, and in Dave Sarachan, we have two people who have been coaches in this league. We have a lot of experience.”

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